Convertible bass drum beater



R. A. HAN-ES Nov. 19, 1968 CONVERTIBLE BASS DRUM BEATER Filed Aug. 1, 1966 INVENTOR.

P0651? A. AMA 5s United States Patent 3,411,395 CONVERTIBLE BASS DRUM BEATER Roger A. Hanes, Fort Dodge, Iowa, assignor of one-half to Thomas Keiser, Charles City, Iowa Filed Aug. 1, 1966, Ser. No. 569,194 6 Claims. (Cl. 84422) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A convertible drum beater which has several different types of striking surfaces thereon, each of which can be rotated into an operative position as desired. The heater ball is mounted on an arm member which is secured to the foot pedal apparatus. The ball is rotatable about an axis which is perpendicular to the :arm member longitudinal axis and which is parallel to the flat striking surface of the drum.

Several problems are generally encountered with conventional bass drum beaters. In order to produce different kinds of sounds on the bass drum, the drummer is required to change from one drum beater to another with a different type of beating surface. This operation entails removing one drum beater from the pedal apparatus and inserting another one.

Another problem encountered is that of adjusting the beater so that its flat surface will fit perfectly against the surface of the drum. Generally drummers accomplish this adjustment by trial and error bending of the stem of the drum beater.

Therefore, it is a principal object of this invention to provide a convertible bass drum beater comprised of a multi-surfaced beater which is rotatable about a longitudinal axis.

A further object of this invention is to extract many sounds by means of a single bass drum beater without having to change from one beater to another.

A further object of this invention is to provide a convertible drum beater that adjusts itself to the surface of the drum.

A further object of this invention is to provide a convertible drum beater which rotates about an axis parallel to the surface of the drum.

A further object of this invention is to provide a convertible drum heater that is simple, rugged, durable, and easy to manufacture.

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

This invention consists in the construction, arrangernents, and combination of various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth, specifically pointed out in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of the convertible drum beater;

FIG. 2 is a front sectional view of the device as seen on line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front view of the device wherein the broken lines indicate structure which would not otherwise be seen;

FIG. 4 is a rear view of the convertible drum beater;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the device as taken on line line 5-5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a side view illustrating the manner in which the convertible drum beater is assembled with the pedal and the drum;

FIG. 7 is a side view illustrating the flat surface of the convertible drum beater in contact with the drum surface; and

3,411,395 Patented Nov. 19, 1968 FIG. 8 illustrates the rounded surface of the convertible drum beater in contact with the drum surface;

The numeral 10 generally designates :a conventional bass drum foot pedal apparatus which is illustrated in FIG. 6 and which includes a securing means 11 for detachably securing rod 12 thereto.

The numeral 13 generally designates a conventional bass drum as illustrated in FIGS. 6, 7, and 8.

A U-shaped bracket 14, having a pair of receiving holes 27 and 28 for mounting a pivot bolt 16 and a pair of receiving holes 29 and 30 for mounting :a cam lock 15, is operatively secured to rod 12.

The numeral 17 generally designates a heater ball having a curved surface 18, a large flat surface 19, a small flat surface 20, and flat sides 21 and 22. The beater ball 17 is rotatably mounted upon pivot bolt 16 between the arms 31 and 32 of the U-shaped bracket 14 by pivot bolt 16 with sides 21 and 22 of beater ball 17 being parallel to the arms 31 and 32 of bracket 14, and with pivot bolt 16 extending through the beater ball 17 at the center of the are formed by surface 18 of beater ball 17. Two washers 23 and 24 are fitted on pivot bolt 16 between the arms 31 and 32 of bracket 14 and sides 22 and 23 of beater ball 17. Rod 12 is positioned in securing means 11 such that pivot bolt 16 lies parallel to the plane defined by the surface of drum 13.

Cam lock 15 has a flat side 25 and a rounded side 26. The cam lock 15 extends through and between the two arms 31 and 32 of bracket 14 such that it is free to rotate 360 degrees and such that it is parallel to pivot bolt 16. When cam lock 15 is rotated into :a position where flat side 25 is facing beater ball 17, the distance between the fiat side 25 and the center of the arc formed by surface 18 of beater ball 17 is slightly greater than the radius of that arc, thereby allowing free rotational movement of beater ball 17 about pivot bolt 16. When the rounded side 26 of cam lock 16 is positioned facing beater ball 17, the distance between rounded side 26 and the center of the arc formed by surface 18 of beater ball 17 is slightly less than the radius of that arc, thereby prohibiting the rotational movement of beater ball 17.

The normal method of operation is as follows. When it is desired to produce a powerful and forceful bass drum beat, cam lock 15 is turned to a position where flat side 25 faces beater ball 17 and is illustrated in FIG. 2. Beater ball 17 is then rotated until the large fiat surface 19 is facing bass drum 13. When pedal apparatus 19 is activated, rod 12 is swung toward drum 13 until surface 19 of beater ball 17 strikes drum 13, thereby producing a powerful and forceful drum beat (see FIG. 6). Because cam lock 15 is in a position which allows beater ball 17 to rotate freely, and because the rotational axis of beater ball 17 is parallel to surface of drum 13, the striking action will cause beater ball 17 to rotate slightly until surface 19 meets flatly against drum 13, thereby allowing beater ball 17 to adjust automatically to the surface of drum 13.

When it is desired to produce a lighter bass drum beat, beater ball 17 is rotated to a position where small surface 20 is facing drum 13. A striking motion then causes small surface 20 to strike drum 13 and to come into alignment with the surface of drum 13, thereby producing a lighter drum beat (see FIG. 7).

When it is desired to produce a conventional drum beat, beater ball 17 is rotated until curved surface 18 is facing drum 13. Cam lock 15 is then turned so that rounded side 26 is facing beater ball 17, thereby locking beater ball 17 in position so that rotational movement is prohibited. Activation of the pedal apparatus 10 will then cause rod 12 to swing toward drum 13 until the rounded surface 18 of beater ball 17 strikes the surface of drum 13 as illustrated in FIG. 8, thereby producing a conventional beat.

Thus it can be seen that a convertible bass drum beater has been provided which accomplishes all of its stated objectives.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of my convertible bass drum beater without departing from the real spirit and purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by my claims, any modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim:

' 1. A convertible bass drum beater for a foot pedal apparatus adapted for use with a bass drum,

an elongated arm member having opposite ends, said arm member being adapted to be operatively detachably secured at one of its ends to the foot pedal apparatus so that activation of said pedal apparatus Will pivot said arm member towards said drum,

a beater ball means operatively rotatably mounted on said arm member at the other end thereof,

said beater ball means having a plurality of drum striking surfaces formed thereon,

said beater ball means adapted to permit the rotatably selective alignment of each of the striking surfaces with respect to said drum,

said striking surfaces of said heater ball means including an arcuate striking surface and two flat striking surfaces, one of which has a greater area than the other.

2. The convertible bass drum beater of claim 1 wherein said heater ball means is rotatably mounted on said arm member so that said striking surfaces are rotatably positioned about an axis which is parallel to the flat striking surface of the drum.

3. A convertible bass drum heater for a foot pedal apparatus adapted for use with a bass drum,

an elongated arm member having opposite ends, said arm member being adapted to be operatively detachably secured at one of its ends to the foot pedal apparatus so that activation of said pedal apparatus will pivot said arm member towards said drum,

a beater ball means operatively rotatably mounted on said arm member at the other end thereof,

said heater ball means having a plurality of drum striking surfaces formed thereon,

said beater ball means adapted to permit the rotatably selective alignment of each of the striking surfaces with respect to said drum,

said beater ball means being rotatably positioned on said arm member about an axis which is perpendicular to said arm member.

4. A convertible bass drum beater for a foot pedal apparatus adapted for use with a bass drum,

an elongated arm member having opposite ends, said arm member being adapted to be operatively detachably secured at one of its ends to the foot pedal apparatus so that activation of said pedal apparatus with pivot said arm member towards said drum,

a heater ball means operatively rotatably mounted on said arm member at the other end thereof,

said heater ball means having a plurality of drum striking surfaces formed thereon,

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said beater ball means adapted to permit the rotatably selective alignment of each of the striking surfaces with respect to said drum,

a locking means mounted on said arm member, said locking means being movable between a first and a second position so that said locking means, when in said first position, holds said beater ball means against rotational movement, and said locking means, when in said second position, allows said beater ball means to rotatably move.

5. A convertible bass drum beater for a foot pedal apparatus adapted for use with a bass drum,

an elongated arm member having opposite ends, said arm member being adapted to be operatively detachably secured at one of its ends to the foot pedal apparatus so that activation of said pedal apparatus will pivot said arm member towards said drum,

a heater ball means operatively rotatably mounted on said arm member at the other end thereof,

said beater ball means having a plurality of drum striking surfaces formed thereon,

said beater ball means adapted to permit the rotatably selective alignment of each of the striking surfaces with respect to said drum,

a bracket means securing said beater ball means to said arm member,

said heater ball means rotatably positioned on said bracket about an axis which is perpendicular to said arm member.

6. A convertible bass drum beater for a foot pedal apparatus adapted for use with a bass drum,

an elongated arm member having opposite ends, said arm member being adapted to be operatively detachably secured at one of its ends to the foot pedal apparatus so that activation of said pedal apparatus will pivot said arm member towards said drum,

a beater ball means operatively rotatably mounted on said arm member at the other end thereof,

said beater ball means having a plurality of drum striking surfaces formed thereon,

said heater ball means adapated to permit the rotatably selective alignment of each of the striking surfaces with respect to said drum,

a bracket means securing said beater =ball means to said arm member,

said heater ball means being rotatably mounted on said arm member so that said striking surfaces are rotatably positioned about an axis which is parallel to the flat striking surface of the drum,

said beater ball means being rotatably positioned on said bracket about an axis which is perpendicular to said arm member.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 582,537 5/1897 Merrill.

1,564,839 12/1925 Evans 84-422 2,586,163 2/1952 Heiderich et a1 84422 ROBERT S. WARD, JR., Primary Examiner. 

